12.29pm: It's a grey lunchtime in Manchester, but that won't stop us bringing you up-to-the-minute reaction from the first day of the Conservative conference. Coming up: what the papers say about the Tories' annual get-together, and more from our columnists this afternoon.

12.32pm: Here's Anne Perkins with the paper review:

Guardian

A whiff of powder hangs over the press this morning. Nothing to do with the tenth anniversary of Afghanistan, it's the Tory leadership attempting to shoot the foxes that threaten to come between them and their image over the next four days in Manchester. So David Cameron tells the Sunday Times he's sorry that he comes across as misogynist, William Hague says to the Observer that there will be no referendum on the EU – but Theresa May, the Home Secretary, tells The Sunday Telegraph that "she personally" wants to axe the Human Rights Act, while the Mail on Sunday says there will be a non-binding debate in the Commons on an EU referendum before Christmas.

Party conferences are famously about keeping up the activists' spirits while avoiding alienating potential supporters. Tory strategy for the coming week – and the rest of the parliament – is clear from today's headlines: it is to present the policies of the radical right in the rhetoric of the centre. In their interviews, Cameron and Hague each stress the value of coalition. The Independent on Sunday talks of a post 2015 Lib Dem presence in cabinet. That won't please many of the delegates (although, according to The Telegraph's Matt d'Ancona, a new lobby group representing the party's pro-Cameron 'silent centre' is to be launched at the end of the week).

There's plenty on Cameron's woman problem. As the Sunday Mirror reports in a different context, language is so important. It's not that Cameron can't speak English, but women don't believe what he says. The Observer reports alarm among Tory strategists, and the Telegraph backs that up with the findings of a YouGov poll for ConservativeHome, also reported in the Sunday Times. Women rate David Cameron's understanding of groups including single parents, small business people, ethnic minority voters, and pensioners significantly worse than men do. The Observer's panel of women points out some of the reasons: government policies damage women – who tend to be the majority of single parents, pensioners etc – disproportionately. Martin Ivens in the Sunday Times makes the connexion between Cameron's unintentionally revealing disrespect for women in the Commons with the class issue, "toffish tittering about 'the ladies'" he writes, doesn't help his real problem of failing to appear on the side of ordinary people. Remember brand detoxification? It's back.

This week is all about keeping near enough to the political centre to give weight to the "all in it together" line. The Telegraph's comment page reveals how difficult that might be. Janet Daly (as it happens, like the Observer's editorial) challenges Cameron to explain exactly what his brand of Conservatism is. She says he must confront "the most objectionable assumption of our time – that 'moral' means Left-wing." Beside her (on the page at least) Matt d'Ancona agrees that when the biggest political event, the economy, is beyond direct intervention, it is vital to establish motive, in this case the ambition to support "ordinary people". (Apparently ministers will be out and about in Manchester helping little old ladies across the road and so on to demonstrate what they're up to.)

But they still have to cheer up the core vote, fed up with the LibDems and coalition, depressed about the economy, hostile to Europe – and furious about the proposed changes to planning law. But Francis Maude in the Independent on Sunday dismisses their criticism and accuses the National Trust of "talking nonsense". Meanwhile, something bound to be picked up when the conference gets its teeth into the subject tomorrow afternoon, the Sunday Times adds to the Guardian's reports last week about the link between property developers and the Tory party, with news that builders have "handed Tories £4m" while local powers to object to planning have been stripped out of the original planning proposals.

So aside from Mrs May's opposition to the HRA (the Home Office, according to the Telegraph report, is trying to find a way round the "right to family life" which it blames for allowing assorted undesirables to remain in the UK) there isn't much red meat for the activists. But any embarrassments – too much support for Boris Johnson, for example, which The Observer puts top of its list – will, according to Andrew Rawnsley, be ignored. The Cameron speech which closes the conference on Wednesday is going to be all about, well, Cameron. As the old Labour formula has it, Conservatism is whatever Cameron does.

Protestors on Princess Street in Manchester on the first day of Conservative party conference, October 2011. guardian.co.uk

2.50pm: Here I am sitting the press centre at Manchester Central, having run the gauntlet of high security and protests around the centre of the city. There were a lot of trade union protesters, as well as some smaller groups – including one committed to saving badgers, who are currently threatened by a cull. That's what conference is like: a sometimes bizarre mixture of people exercised over the big political questions, and a selection of special interest groups. I'm going to be having a look at the twittersphere in a minute and hope to bring you some reactions from commentators who've already been getting stuck in.

3.48pm: Our very own Stephen Moss has been watching Sayeeda Warsi's opening address. His verdict: she did well, despite acoustics. But he reminds us this is no normal Tory conference – the party is in coaltion.

Cif contributor Paul Goodman has the following words of wisdom for David Cameron:

guardian.co.uk

Nothing would delight a section of the conference floor more than for David Cameron to roll up his sleeves and take Ed Miliband on during his conference speech.But that's a job for Sayeeda Warsi. Or, better, for William Hague. Or, better still, for Boris Johnson (plus a legion of backbenchers). Because Cameron should be serious, weighty, Prime Ministerial - and above dignifying Labour's floundering leader with anything other than a single dismissive joke.

5.31pm: Just sat in on William Hague's "keynote" speech. Not on foreign affairs, just a general rallying of the troops. He was full of praise for the coalition as a concept, and even managed to get Nick Clegg a round of applause in absentia. But he also got in some carping over AV and the Euro (I heard someone behind say "What are you going to do about it then? Referendum!" when he was exclaiming how right he'd been about the dangers of closer union.)

The Tory faithful on Twitter generally rated the speech well. Even Kevin Macguire of the Mirror says:

Everything was in William Hague's favour. David Cameron and George Osborne had made the short walk across to the convention centre from the Midland hotel to hear him speak – a frisson ran through the hall when the prime minister took his seat with a modest wave – and Hague was following a feeble effort from international development secretary Andrew Mitchell, who is not a darling of conference, even though he made great play of ending the funding for a percussion-based dance troupe in Tottenham. "No more Labour fandangos," cried Mitchell, dying on his feet.

Hague was much more assured. He must have listened to a lot of sermons in his youth, because his public speaking has the rhythm of the pulpit. There was no great substance to what he said – this was start-of-conference knockabout, feelgood stuff – but the style was winning.

He invoked the spectre of Gordon Brown hanging on in 2010, attacked "all the Eds" who run the Labour party, mentioned "government in the national interest" half a dozen times and gave a fulsome thank you to Nick Clegg (cue genuinely heartfelt applause in the hall), without whom none of this would be possible.

David Cameron was eulogised for getting rid of Gaddafi (as well as Gordon) – it was impossible to say if the prime minister blushed, so pink is his complexion – and Hague said how much he missed John Prescott for the joy he used to bring. Hague is officially foreign secretary, but his real role is to be the Prezza of this administration: warm, funny, northern, unchallenging to the incumbent. He makes the party feel good about itself. Tomorrow George Osborne will dissipate the warm glow.

6.20pm: Things are winding down after the first (half) day of the Conservative party conference here in Manchester, where it has started raining cats and dogs. We'll be back tomorrow with lots of rolling comment from our columnists. In the meantime, I'll leave you with this further thought from Stephen Moss, who will be tweeting useful tidbits throughout conference: